Puzzled

I've been working on a puzzle for the past week...it has been frustrating, but I have learned something through it. When I do puzzles, I do them in waves; I have a method. First, I do the border, once that boundary is set, I know the area I have to work with. Then I start seperating colors, shades etc. and choose a certain portion to work on. As I'm working, I know there is a bigger picture, but I don't see it or know what it is from these pieces. (this puzzle didn't come with a picture on the box of what it is going to look like). Anyways, I work on this one section until I get frustrated with it or complete it, and then move onto another section of the puzzle. After doing this for a while, I realized that I have a ton of small section, but they aren't united. The task then becomes trying to fit it all into the border I created earlier. I've realized that this puzzle is kinda like my life. The Lord has the big picture in view, He knows what my life is going to look like and He is putting my life together piece by piece, section by section. Each piece of the puzzle (my life) is experiences, relationships, moments etc. At any given point in time, I only see one section, the pieces immediately around me. I might get frustrated because I may not thing it fits into "what I've been called to do", but then the LORD connects more pieces together and shows me that it really does connect to the big picture. I just don't have the big picture yet!





If I was to see the big picture, before it is completed, I would get frustrated with all the missing holes. I would try to fill in those holes the way I think it is best but the LORD is the one who fills those in, and He wants to! The LORD has every piece of my life in mind, He knows what each piece looks like and how it is going to fit into the big picture...HIS plan. And when the puzzle is complete, it is going to be beautiful!

Student of Life

I was able to see a familiar face from California today. Student. Professor. Friend. Ann-Caryn. She is a student of life, probably the most influential professor I had at Vanguard and now my friend. Not only did she teach me about film, theory and "academic" stuff, but she also taught me a lot about life. We got together to work on my documentary, but because of some missing files, that was not able to happen. Instead, we just sat together, talked some, but mostly enjoyed each other's company.
Even out of the classroom, I am picking up and learning things from her. One thing I've been learning is that you never stop learning. Just because I'm out of school and the "structured learning environment" doesn't by any means mean that I don't learn. I'm learning to become a student of life. Different situations teach me things, as does the Lord teach mean everyday who He is and who I am to be in Him. Ann-Caryn is probably the best person I know who is living this out. I told her about a program that is used at my work and she hadn't heard of it, so immediately she hopped online and found it, downloaded it and started learning it. She is always trying to learn new programs, or learn new things about programs she already knows. Not only does she strive to know more programs and tech stuff, but she is striving to learn how to become a better professor so that her students can learn.
All that to say that she is such an inspiration and encouragement to me. She challenges me to do better, and she challenges/encourages me to never stop learning. Watching her balance work, church, family, filmmaking and still how she finds time to sit down and learn is inspiring. Thank you Ann-Caryn for your inspiration, encouragement, challenges and support through the years. I can't wait to see the next things in life that the Lord teaches you you learn and I can't wait to see what the Lord teaches me and what I learn though life as well!

Prayer Request

I just got an email from a dear friend of mine and it was an update on his dad.  His dad has cancer and they were just told that the doctors don't expect him to live past tomorrow.  Tom has asked me and others to pray so I am extending that request to all of you.  The Lord is more powerful than any cancer and any sickness... any disease!!!!  Jeremiah 33:6 says: "Behold I will bring it health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth."  That is a promise of our Lord Jesus and those are the promises I am going to stand on.  So I am asking that you will join me in prayer for Tom and his family as they are going through this painful time.